Interview Interrogation: Patricia Pons from SynlakrosS (Spain)

Spanish Modern Melodic Death Metal outfit SynlakrosS have been rampaging around the block since 2008 and since then have released one demo and two albums, the second "Death Bullets For A Forajido" dropped back in May. With their sharp rise in the Spanish Metal scene and the line-up only changing the one time, things are looking bright for this hot property.

Check out their music video "Curly Wolves" below.

We aimed to keep the band cornered but as they ran and hid, the band's front-woman Patricia Pons was more than happy to seek the members up and bind them together, whilst she directed her answers to our questions.

Patricia Pons, not exactly your modern Calamity Jane

"(In Spain) if you want promotion, in general, you have to pay, no matter how amazing and well done is your music"

Could you give us the background by your new music video 'Curly Wolves'? What does it mean, who recorded it, etc.

          "‘Curly Wolf’ means a tough objectionable character, a real tough guy. So, we made 'Curly Wolves' as a hymn, a statement of intent: ‘Destroy what destroys you’. It's that simple, without concessions, regardless of whether the problem is society or you. Destroy everything, be a tough guy, a 'Curly Wolf', willing to face up, ruthless and rebellious. But you are not alone, together we can do it. That is the essence. The video was directed and produced by Henry Menacho (Kronic Productions) in Barcelona"


You've just released your second album 'Death Bullets for a Forajido', what is different on this album in contrast to your debut? Will there be a UK / EU tour supporting the album?

          "There are a lot of differences, our sound is better, it is more mature of course, and was produced by Facundo Novo (Novo Estudios). We worked hard on this album, we had a clear idea of what we wanted to do on this album, and we learned a lot about the process and mistakes of the debut album. Yes, we want to tour around the UK and EU with this album, but we haven’t got anything sorted yet. Are there any promoters reading this? (LOL)"


Relating to the previous question, there is a 'Wild West' theme going on through the album, how did you decide on this theme? Will we expect another album with a similar theme? Would you agree that SynlakrosS might be one of the first bands to sing about said theme?

          "Well, it was a joke at first, to do a Wild West album, but after a few weeks the joke turned into a great idea. I started to investigate about the Wild West, it was an amazing experience and a huge inspiration, and my mates were happy to do this kind of album. And yes, SynlakrosS might be one of the first bands to sing about this theme. Now, we are working on the next album and the thematic is very, very different."


What could you tell us about the Valencian Metal scene? Is it popular? Do people from Valencia prefer to be referred to as 'Valencian' rather than Spanish? (in relation to the ongoing Basque Country and Catalonia debate).

          "We have great bands here, but it isn’t a popular scene in my opinion. The bands and metalheads here aren’t united, so it’s a difficult situation for bands like us who want to be professional, and there is far too much ego and bad competitions between bands, that's what I see, and I don’t understand it… there are a couple of clubs for metal bands, and gigs and little festivals are made by the local bands in general. There are people who prefer ‘Valencian’, but in general I think people are OK with the term Spanish. I prefer Spanish if I have to choose."

What makes your style of Melodic Death Metal unique and how would you describe your sound without genre-tagging? What styles of metal does each member bring into the band?

          "We have different influences inside and out of metal music and this is reflected in our Melodic Death Metal music. We describe our sound like as 'Passionate Metal', we say ‘Killer Metal Music’ (killer, very cool) because we love what we do."


Would you agree that Spanish Metal is slightly underrated and that there should be more attention paid to the scene? Are there any media(s) covering metal music in Spain?

          "Yes, it is, but the only thing that we can do now to change this is to work hard creating great music and touring around the world until the situation changes. And first of all, understand the importance of learning English. In Spain it is our pending subject.

          Of course we have media, magazines, radios, etc,. But big magazines and radios only talk about international big bands, or national big old bands, if you want promotion, in general, you have to pay, no matter how amazing and well done is your music. Sad, but true."


Individually what hobbies and interests do you have outside of your main job and music? Do any of these interests / hobbies have some inspiration towards your music?

          "Of course, they are a great inspiration. We love manga, anime, video-games, books… and we use this inspiration on lyrics and music."


What plans have you got for the rest of 2016? With the EU referendum in the UK drawing close, are you worried even by the slightest what challenges might arise after the referendum? 

          "No we aren't worried, music is like water, it finds the way to get in through small holes. So, our plans are to work hard and tour with the new album as much as possible."


Finally have you got any hello's or thank you's that you wish to send out?

          "Yes!! Thank you very much for all our fans and friends from UK. Thanks for your love, support, and bought our new album and merch. You are the best!! We can’t wait to play there and be with you. Big hug!!"


"Death Bullets For A Forajido" is out now via an Independent Release

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